Autochrome by Franklin Price Knoll 



THE CHIEF PRIEST OF THE SNAKE CLAX: HOPI TRIBE 

 His face and bcdy are smeared with black and white and yellow paint. His ornaments are many. 

 A gray fox skin dangles from his back. On his legs are bound shells of the desert terrapin with points 

 of antelope hoofs inside to serve as rattles. Eagle feathers are carried in one hand, with which the 

 snakes are stroked and pacified. A prayer stick is also in his hand. Some claim that the priests 

 drink an herb tea before the dance which renders them immune to the poison, but all agree that the 

 snakes' fangs are not extracted. 



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